Thursday, July 16, 2009

Norma McCorvey Is Jane Roe

And she keeps herself in the news by getting arrested from time to time. Since her conversion in the 1990s Norma McCorvey has become a vocal opponent of the abortion rights she helped put in place.

[Washington Post] The woman at the center of the Supreme Court's landmark abortion rights ruling was arrested today at the confirmation hearing for Sonia Sotomayor among a wave of anti-abortion protesters who lined the sidewalks outside the Senate office buildings and several of whom made it into the hearing room and disrupted in an attempt to disrupt the proceedings.

Norma McCorvey, 61, of Texas, better known as "Jane Roe" in the famous Roe v. Wade case from January 1973, was arrested after she and another protester started yelling during the opening statement of Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.), according to Capitol Police. McCorvey, whose pursuit of the right to access to abortion in the early 1970s led to the ruling that has been a pivotal part of every Supreme Court nomination process since, eventually become a notable opponent of the procedure.

What I find very interesting about this story is that it was covered in any detail by the press. As Jane Roe, McCorvey represents a possible potent voice against abortion, so abortion supporters have a vested interest in silencing her and not giving her any air or press. Certainly the younger generation has no idea who this lady is.

So to cover McCorvey's disruption of the Sotomayor hearing is natural, but to give the details of her background is a little surprising given the traditional liberal bent of most media groups. Maybe they figure that she no longer has relevance after so much time. McCorvey is not an eloquent speaker. Maybe it's just news.